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Product Brief
Intel® Ethernet Network
Adapter X520-DA2
Delivers proven 10GbE performance, flexibility,
and scalability for virtual network environments
Key Features
• Dual-port 10GbE SFP+ connectivity
• Data Plane Development Kit
(DPDK) Optimized
• Intel® Ethernet Flow Director for
hardware based application
traffic steering
• Excellent small packet performance
for Network Functions
Virtualization (NFV)
• Intelligent offloads to enable high
performance on servers with Intel®
Xeon® Processors
• I/O virtualization innovations for
maximum performance in a
virtualized server
Overview
The Intel® Ethernet Network Adapter X520-DA2 for Dell PowerEdge Rack
and Tower servers enables data center transformation by delivering a reliable,
10GbE network connectivity. Advanced network packet processing features
include: DPDK PMD support, Intel Ethernet Flow Director, and intelligent
offloads. Board OS driver support delivers industry-leading I/O virtualization
capabilities, including support for Single Route I/O virtualization (SR-IOV) and
Virtual Machine Device Queues (VMDq). The Intel Ethernet Network Adapter
X520-DA2 facilitates greater network infrastructure consolidation and is the
best choice for 10GbE I/O virtualization.
Designed as a low-cost, low-power adapter, the dual-port Intel Ethernet
Network Adapter X520-DA2, coupled with a low-profile PCI Express form
factor, make this adapter ideal for slot-constrained environments.
Intel Ethernet Network Adapter X520-DA2 supports both SR and LR optic
modules and direct attach copper cables compliant with the SFP+ MSA
SFF-8431 specification, that are well-suited for customers who require
low-cost "in-the-rack” connections of up to 7 meters between server and
top-of-rack switch.
The Intel® Ethernet Network Adapter X520-DA2
includes these featured technologies:
I/O Virtualization
The explosive growth in virtualization is leading to an
increasing demand for network performance. With more
Virtual Machines (VMs) running on each multi-core server,
networking traffic is dramatically increased with each VM
competing for available I/O bandwidth. The Intel Ethernet
Network Adapter X520-DA2 addresses networking
bottlenecks in virtualized environments. This adapter
enables network-intensive applications to achieve the
performance expected in a virtualized environment.
Virtual Machine Device Queues (VMDq): Optimizes
network performance by offloading data sorting and
copying from the software Virtual Switch in the VMM
to the Intel® Ethernet 82599 10 Gigabit Controller. This
configuration is best suited for a large number of VMs
running standard applications that have limited bandwidth
and latency requirements.
For mission-critical applications, where dedicated I/O is
required for maximum network performance, users can
assign a dedicated virtual adapter port to a VM. The Intel
Ethernet Network Adapter X520-DA2 provides direct VM
connectivity and data protection across VMs using SR-IOV.
SR-IOV technology allows the data to bypass the software
virtual switch and provides near-native performance. It
assigns either physical or virtual I/O ports to individual VMs
directly. This technology is best suited for applications that
demand the highest I/O throughput and lowest latency
performance such as database, storage, financial and
other applications.
PCI-SIG Single Root I/O Virtualization (SR-IOV): Is
a mechanism for devices to advertise their ability to
be directly assigned to multiple virtual machines. This
technology allows for the partitioning of a PCI function
into many virtual interfaces for the purpose of sharing
the resources of a PCI Express (PCIe) device in a virtual
environment. These virtual interfaces are called Virtual
Functions. Each virtual function can support a unique and
separate data path for I/O-related functions within the PCIe
hierarchy. Use of SR-IOV with a networking device, for
example, allows the bandwidth of a single port (function) to
be partitioned into smaller slices that may be allocated to
specific VMs, or guests, via a standard interface.
The Intel Ethernet Network Adapter X520-DA2 delivers
the same functionality and throughput as ten dual-port
one-Gigabit adapters, saving cost, power, and complexity.
PCIe v2.0 (5 GT/s)
PCIe v2.0 (5 GT/s) support enables customers to take
full advantage of 10GbE by providing a maximum of 20
Gbps bi-directional throughput per port on a single
dual-port card.
Support for iSCSI
Supports proven native OS and VMM iSCSI initiators as
well as iSCSI boot. Historically, CRC32C computation
has degraded system performance, but now with the
CRC instruction set included in the latest Intel® Xeon®
processors, CRC validation is possible with minimal
impact to network throughput while delivering superior
data integrity.
Security Optimizations
The adapter supports IPsec offload for Microsoft’s
Network Access Protection (NAP), Active Directory,
and future security capabilities in Windows 7.
Customers can run a secure network environment without
sacrificing performance.
Designed for Multi-core Processors
Support for technologies such as multiple MSI-X vectors,
and Low Latency Interrupts allow the adapter to provide
high-performance, 10 Gigabit connectivity in multi-core
PowerEdge servers. These technologies distribute
network processing across multiple CPU cores, improving
overall performance.
For today’s demanding virtualized data center
environments, the Intel Ethernet Network Adapter
X520-DA2 delivers ultimate flexibility and scalability.
Software Tools and Management
Intel Ethernet server and converged network adapters
support Dell’s Lifecycle Controller. The Lifecycle
Controller is coupled with the Dell DRAC service processor
to provide embedded system management. The Lifecycle
Controller enables both local and remote access to manage
initial setup and configuration of the BIOS settings on
the platform, setup and configuration of Intel Ethernet
adapters, update of all the platform firmware, and the
deployment of the operating systems.
Intel® Advanced Network Services (Intel® ANS) include
new teaming technologies and techniques such as
Virtual Machine Load-Balancing (VMLB) for Hyper-V
environments. Intel ANS also provides a variety of
teaming configurations for up to eight ports, and support
for teaming mixed vendors’ server adapters. Intel ANS
includes support for 802.1Q VLANs, making Intel ANS
one of the most capable and comprehensive tools for
supporting server adapter teaming.
Features
General
Intel® 82599 10 Gigabit Ethernet Controller
Low-profile
Load balancing on multiple CPUs
RoHS-compliant, lead-free technology
Time Sync (IEEE 1588, 802.1as)
I/O Features for Multi-Core Processor Servers
Intel® QuickData Technology
MSI-X support
Low latency interrupts
Header Splits and Replication in Receive
Multiple Queues: 4 queues per port
Tx/Rx IP, SCTP, TCP, and UDP checksum offloading
(IPv4, IPv6) capabilities
Tx TCP segmentation offload (IPv4, IPv6)
Receive and Transmit Side Scaling for Windows
environment and Scalable I/O for Linux
environments (IPv4, IPv6, TCP/UDP)
MACSec
Virtualization Features
Virtual Machine Device queues (VMDq)¹
Next-Generation VMDq¹ (64 queues per port)
PCI-SIG SR-IOV Implementation
(64 virtual functions per port)
IPv6 Offloading
Advanced Packet Filtering
VLAN support with VLAN tag insertion, stripping and • Ability to create multiple VLAN segments.
packet filtering for up to 4096 VLAN tags
Manageability Features
Preboot eXecution Environment (PXE) Support
Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP)
andRemote Network Monitoring (RMON)
Statistic Counters
iSCSI Boot
Watchdog Timer
Description
• Industry-leading, energy-efficient design for next-generation 10 Gigabit performance and
multi-core processors.
• Enables higher bandwidth and throughput from standard and low-profile PCIe slots and servers.
• Increases performance on multi-processor systems by efficiently balancing network loads across CPU cores
when used with Receive-Side Scaling from Microsoft or Scalable I/O on Linux.
• Complies with the European Union directive 2002/95/EC to reduce the use of hazardous materials.
• Enabled networked Ethernet equipment synchronize internal clocks according to a network master clock;
endpoint can then acquire an accurate estimate of the master time by compensating for link latency.
• DMA Engine: enhances data acceleration across the platform (network, chipset, processor), lowering
CPU usage.
• Direct Cache Access (DCA): enables the adapter to pre-fetch the data from memory, avoiding cache misses
and improving application response time.
• Minimizes the overhead of interrupts.
• Load-balancing of interrupt handling between multiple cores/CPUs.
• Based on the sensitivity of the incoming data, the adapter can bypass the automatic moderation of time inter-
vals between the interrupts.
• Helps the driver focus on the relevant part of the packet without the need to parse it.
• Network packet handling without waiting or buffer overflow providing efficient packet prioritization.
• Lower processor usage.
• Checksum and segmentation capability extended to new standard packet type.
• Increased throughput and lower processor usage.
• Compatible with large-send offload feature (in Microsoft Windows Server operating systems).
• Enables the direction of the interrupts to the processor cores in order to improve the CPU utilization rate.
• IEEE spec: 802.1AE.
• Layer 2 data protection that provides encryption and authentication ability between two individual devices
(routers, switches, etc.).
• MACSec is designed into the network adapter hardware. These adapters are prepared to provide MACSec
functionality when the ecosystem is ready to support this new technology.
• Offloads the data-sorting functionality from the Hypervisor to the network silicon, improving data throughput
and CPU usage.
• Provides QoS feature on the Tx data by providing round-robin servicing and preventing head-of-line blocking.
• Sorting based on MAC addresses and VLAN tags.
• Enhanced QoS feature by providing weighted round-robin servicing for the Tx data.
• Provides loopback functionality, where data transfer between the virtual machines within the same physical
server need not go out to the wire and come back in, improving throughput and CPU usage.
• Supports replication of multicast and broadcast data.
• Provides an implementation of the PCI-SIG standard for I/O Virtualization. The physical configuration of each
port is divided into multiple virtual ports. Each virtual port is assigned to an individual virtual machine directly
by bypassing the virtual switch in the Hypervisor, resulting in near-native performance.
• Integrated with Intel® Virtualization Technology for Directed I/O (Intel® VT-d) to provide data protection
between virtual machines by assigning separate physical addresses in the memory to each virtual machine.
• Checksum and segmentation capability extended to the new standard packet type.
• 24 exact-matched addresses (unicast or multicast).
• 4096-bit hash filter for unicast and multicast frames.
• Lower processor usage.
• Promiscuous (unicast and multicast) transfer mode support.
• Optional filtering of invalid frames.
• Enables system boot up via the LAN (32-bit and 64-bit).
• Flash interface for PXE image.
• Easy system monitoring with industry-standard consoles.
• Enables system boot up via iSCSI.
• Provides additional network management capability.
• Gives an indication to the manageability firmware or external devices that the chip or the driver is
not functioning.
Specifications
General
Connections Dual SFP+ cages supporting Direct Attach Copper (DAC) Twinaxial cable and optical transceivers
Network Standard Physical Layer Interfaces IEEE 802.3
SFF-8431
10GbE SFP+ DAC

Technical Features Product Order Codes for PowerEdge

Operating Temperature 0 °C to 55 °C (32 °F to 131 °F) Description SKU Dell Tech Intel MM#

Air Flow Minimum of 100 LFM required X520-DA2, FH Factory installed: 540-BBCT XYT17 924282
Customer kit: 540-BBDR
Storage Temperature -40 °C to 70 °C (-40 °F to 158 °F )
X520-DA2, LP Factory installed: 540-BBDG 942V6 924282
Storage Humidity Maximum: 90% non-condensing Customer kit: 540-BBDW
relative humidity at 35 °C
LED Indicators LINK (solid) and ACTIVITY (blinking)
LINK SPEED (green = 10Gbps; yellow = 1Gbps) Supported Operating Systems (X86-64)
Windows Server 2016
Adapter Features Windows Server 2012 R2
Data Rate Supported • Optical: 1GbE/10GbE SLES 12 SP3
Per Port • Direct Attach: 10GbE
VMware vSphere 2016 U1
Bus Type PCI Express 2.0 (5 GT/s)
VMware ESXi 6.0 U3
Bus Width x8 lane PCI Express
Interrupt Levels INTA, MSI, MSI-X
Intel® Ethernet Optics and Cables
Hardware Certifications FCC B, UL, CE, VCCI, BSMI, CTICK, KCC
Intel® Ethernet SFP+ Optics and Cables provide unmatched flexibility for
Controller Intel® 82599ES 10 Gigabit Ethernet Controller LAN and SAN networking. Intel Ethernet Optics undergo extensive
Plug and play Standard compatibility testing for trouble-free interoperability, and deliver proven,
specification support reliable performance.

Receive Side Scaling Multiple Rx queues enable the efficient Dell EMC SKU Intel MM# Description
distribution of network receive processing 407-BBVK 942697 SFP+ Optic SR, 1x 10GbE
across multiple CPUs in multiprocessor systems
407-BBZV 952748 SFP+ Optic LR, 1x 10GbE
Direct Cache Access (DCA) The I/O device activates a prefetch engine in
the CPU that loads the data into the CPU cache XDACBL1M 918500 SFP+ Twinaxial Cable - 1 m
ahead of time, before use, eliminating cache
XDACBL3M 918501 SFP+ Twinaxial Cable - 3 m
misses and reducing CPU load
XDACBL5M 918502 SFP+ Twinaxial Cable - 5 m

Power Consumption
Dell Tech Backing Information
SKU Typical Power Maximum Power
Standard one-year warranty.
Dual-port 10GBASE-SR/1000BASE-SX 10 W 10.7 W
Dual-port Direct Attached 7.9 W 8.6 W

To see the full line of Intel Ethernet Network

Physical Dimensions
Adapters visit www.dell.com or contact your
Dimension 5.73 inches long, measured without PCI bracket
Dell EMC sales representative.
1
Requires a system that supports VMDq.
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